Nestle accused of pilfering Atari 'Breakout' game for 'Kit Kat' ads

(Reuters) - A new lawsuit accuses Nestle SA (NESN.S) of blatantly violating the rights of Atari (ATAR.PA) by using without permission the classic 1970s video game “Breakout” in a new marketing campaign for its Kit Kat chocolate-covered wafers.

In a complaint filed on Thursday in federal court in San Francisco, Atari said Nestle knowingly exploited the “Breakout” name, look and feel through social media and a video, hoping to leverage “the special place it holds among nostalgic Baby Boomers, Generation X, and even today’s Millennial and post-Millennial ‘gamers.’”

Nestle did not immediately respond to requests for comment after regular business hours.

Created as a successor to “Pong” by Steve Wozniak with help from Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, “Breakout” requires a player to knock down rows of colored bricks with a paddle.

According to Atari, “Nestle simply took the classic ‘Breakout’ screen, replaced its bricks with Kit Kat bars, and invited customers to ‘breakout’ and buy more candy bars.”

Atari's complaint includes a link to an ad for Kit Kat Bites, titled "Kit Kat: Breakout," showing adults and children seated on a coach, using paddles to knock down Kit Kat bars. ((vimeo.com/204352144))

“The infringing conduct in this case is so plain and blatant that Nestle cannot claim to be an ‘innocent’ infringer,” the complaint said. “Nestle knew exactly what it was doing.”